Apparatus for manufacturing turbine-buckets.



E. H. PARQUHAR. APPARATUS FOR MANUFACTURING TURBINE BUGKETS. APPLIOATION FILED FEB. 11, 1907.

902,526, Patented Oct. 27, 1908.

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APPLICATION FILED FEB. 11, 1907; r 902,526. Patented 0013.27, 1908.

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/ ,QU/WL" A zz llNlTED STAKES PATENT EDMUND H. FARQUHAR, OF SOHENEOTADY,.NEW YORK, ASSlGNOR TO GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

APPARATUS FOR MANUFACTURING- TURBllNE-B'Ufiml'is.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 27, 1908.

Original application filed January 2, 1906, Serial No. 294,182. Divided and this application filed February 11, 1907.

Serial No. 3&6/763.

To aZZ wh-mn it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDMUND H. FAR- QUHAR, a citizen of the United States, residing at Schenectady, county of Schenectady,

improved apparatus for manufacturing turbme buckets by casting separately formed buckets into a base whereby uniform and satisfactory results may be obtained by the class of workmen ordinarily employed in foundries and machine shops.

In the manufacture of buckets for elastic fluid turbines, it is of the utmost importance that the individual buckets shall be firmly secured to theirsupport on account of the great stress to which they are subjected; that the buckets shall be accurately alined at top and bottom; that the inlet and discharge angles shall be in exact accordance with the theoretical alues therefor:

' and that the height, pitch and location of the buckets with respect to the base shall be in exact accordance with those called for by the specifications and drawings.

in carrying out my invention I make the buckets of a suitable alloy that is capable of being readily worked; is capable of receiving a smooth finish on its surface; is sulficiently hard to prevent steam or other mo tive fluid from cutting it excessively; is noncorrosive and will not rust or be otherwise injured by the motive fluid. Experience has demonstrated that buckets made of a. hot rolling alloy possess these qualities. 1 prefer to make the base with which the buckets are united of an alloy which possesses the necessary strength; is easy to work; will make a good union with the buckets; and maybe cast at a relatively moderate temperature. V] here the base is made of an alloy having the same or substantially the same characteristics as the bucket material, it will generally be satisfactory.

The bucket stock as it comes from the extruding dies is usually sutliciently close to. the required dimensions to be used without further machining except cutting the long bars into bucket lengths, but if necessary to secure the smooth surface and exact dimensions essential to efficient operation, the

stock may be passed through swaging dies or dressed by suitable machine operations. When the buckets are to be provided with a cover, the ends are formed into tenons of suitable shape to receive it by milling or in some other manner.

The preferred procedure in a foundry is to pour all metal at a uniform or substair tially uniform temperature, and where'structures are being made with bucket stock differing considerably in its cross-sectional area, some ofthe buckets of large cross-section may not be thoroughly united with the cast metal base owing to chilling, while others of smaller cross-section may be injuriously overheated. In this connection it must be borne in mind that if, one bucket is not properly united or is in any Way injured, the whole bucket segment is discarded... To avoid the above difiiculties, and to permit the foundry to use metal at substantially uniform temperature for all buckets without regard, to their cross-section, the base ends of the buckets are so formed that they present substantially the same cross-section to the molten metal. The buckets need not in all cases be treated in this manner but if their size and the temperature of the metal require it, the surface of the base of the bucket may be reduced as by cutting a. slot or opening of suitable dimensions therein. This slot may be substantially rectangular with parallel walls or may have ,a dove-tail shape so that there is amechanical union of the parts in addition to that due to the fusing of the metals.

The molds in which the buckets are cast to the base'will now be described. lllounted on the follow-board is a block of suitable shape to serve as a core-print form a chamber in the mold to receive and position v to insure their occupying the proper p051.

tion. In the present instance they stand radially. -The crown is then clamped in place. The block and crown constitute in elf ect a frame for holding the buckets, the construction of which can evidently be varied without departing from my invention.

- Preferably the block is'provided with a gate or runner andmolding sand is then packed around the block and between the buckets.

The drag or nowel is mounted on the follow-- board and a certain amount of sand added and rammed. At or about thisfstage of the operations the crown is removed and the drag or nowel completely filled'with sand and rammed. After being suitably surfaced on the top a cover is clamped on and the mold reversed. The follow-board is removed exposing what was the under side of the blockand the sand covered with charcoal or other parting medium. The cope is placed in position with means for forming the sprue and one or more risers where such devices are necessary. The .cope 1s filledwith sand, rammed and the sprue and risers removed. The cope is lifted off exposing the block and the gate or runner. Then these parts and the spacers are taken out of the mold leaving the ends of the buckets projecting a certain predetermined distance from the sand. The mold is then slicked or otherwise treatedto'keep itflin shape. The completed mold is put in an .ovenand baked for a suitable length of time to. dry it out and make it hard enough to insure a good casting without cutting. -The core is then inserted, the cope replaced and the mold is ready for pouring. Metal at the proper temperature is poured into the mold and fuses'with the bucket bases so that the whole becomes an'integral mass which solidifies on cooling. After removing the casting, the gate and sprue are cut off, the casting dressed to the proper dimensions and provided with one orv more bolt-holes'where needed to se cure it to a wheel-or other support. If desired, the union of the buckets with the base may be tested before finishing by striking each of the buckets a light blow. The buckets having a defective union with the base will give off a different note from those having a perfect union. If the casting is a trading dies;-Fig. 3 is a perspective view of I the bucket ready fen insertion in the mold;

Figs. 4, 5 and 6 show difi'erentforms of slots or holes in the base ends of the buckets; Fig. 7 is an inverted plan view of the crown used to hold the outer ends of the buckets while inthe mold; Fig. 8 is a section on line 88 of Fig. 7; Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the follow-board with the arc-shaped block mounted thereon; Fig. 10' isa perspective view of'the drag or nowel after it has been inverted and the follow-board and block removed; and Fig. 11 is a perspective View of one of the spacing devices.

In Fig. 1, 1 indicates. the cast metal'ba se and 2 the saparately formedbuc'kets cast into the base to form an integral part thereof.

Fig. 2 shows the bucket as received from the 1 dies before it is dressed or cut to the required shape. Fig. .3 shows a bucket after it is 'dressedand ready fdr use. On-the outer end of the bucket is a tenon 3 for securin the cover't. -The base; of the bucket is re uced in cross-section by cutting a slot 5, Fig. 4, or a hole 6,-Fig. .5. The slot may have straight sides as in Fig. 3 or be dove-tailed as in Fig. 4, or two oppositely disposed holes 7 may be provided as-in Fig. 6. Y

, Fig. 7 shows in inverted plan the crown 8 for holding the upper ends of the buckets. Projections 9 are formed on adjacent sur-. faces of the longitudinal members 10 and between the projections are slots or grooves to receive the tenons and hold the buckets. Each longitudinal member is provided with a row of tapered pins 11 which, when the crown is in place,'engage the ends of the buckets and direct the tenons into the spaces between the projections.

In Fig. 9, 12 indicatesthe follow-board.

and 13 the block containing a shallow groove 14 on its upper face to receive the buckets 2 and the removable spacers 15. Thecrown 8 is provided with a longitudinal slot "16 through which the tenons on the buckets can be seen. The crown is held in place by clamps 17 that enter the block 13.

18 indicates the gate or runner which may be attached to the block or be separable therefrom. v Fig. 10 shows the drag with the cope removed and the base ends of the buckets projecting from the sand. In the illustration, the block and crown are segments of circles straight and bent afterwards if desired, al-

' though this method is not so satisfactory because it necessitates an additional operation.

In accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes, I ,have described the principle of operation of my invention together with the apparatus which I now consider to represent the best embodiment thereof; but I desire to have it understood that the apparatus shown is only illustrative, and that the invention can be carried out by other means.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patentof the United States, is, 1. A means for casting separately formed turbine buckets to a segmental supporting base, comprising a flask, and a holder which holds the buckets in place while the sand is being rammed in the flask and is removed before the metalis poured, said holder including an arc-shaped segmental block with which the buckets engage at one end, spacing means'carriedby the block for separating the buckets by the desired pitch distance, acrown which engages the opposite ends of the buckets to maintain them in radial relation to the segmental block, and devices for clamping the buckets between the crown and the block.

2. A means for casting separately formed buckets to a-supporting base, comprising a flask, and'a holder for alining-the individual buckets in the flask while the sand is being rammed, said holder including a block with which thebucketsengage at one end, spacing means carried by the block for separating the buckets by the desired pitch distance, a crown engaging the opposite ends of the buckets to preserve the alinement, and means for clamping the buckets between the crown and the block. I

3. A means for casting separately formed buckets to asupporting base, comprising a flask,.a means for temporarily holding the buckets in the flask while the sand is being rammed, comprising a block having a shallow'groove to receive the ends of the buckets, removable spacers located in the groove between the buckets, and a crown engaging the opposite ends of the buckets to preserve the alinement, and devices for clampingthe buckets bet-ween the crown and the block.

4. A means for casting separately formed buckets to a supporting base,'comprising a flask, and a holder for al'ining the individual buckets in the flask while the sand is being rammed, said holder including a block with which the buckets engage at one end, and

spacing means for separating the buckets by the desired pitch distance, the block also forming a print for the core which determined the thickness of the base.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 8th day of February, 1907.

. EDMUND H. FARQUHAR.

Witnesses:

HELEN ORFORD, MARGARET E. WOOLLEY. 

